Emanuele Pellizzari: lab test of carabiners used at belay stations

Some interesting facts about mailon rapides made in UE in comparison to those made in China, as well as “hardware” carabiners you may find at some lower offs on sport routes. Carabiners, mailon rapides and quickdraws have been tested and analised by Emanuele Pellizzari at the Italian Mountaineering Club Gear and Techniques laboratory at Taggì di Sopra, Villafranca Padovana in Italy and published at www.planetmountain.com

A sample of carabiners and quickdraws have been tested and analised by Emanuele Pellizzari at the Italian Mountaineering Club Gear and Techniques laboratory at Taggì di Sopra, Villafranca Padovana, Padova, Italy.

Over the last 14 months I’ve collected enough carabiners used as lower-offs at belays to make a sound statistical analysis with the aim of drawing some conclusions about their breaking strengths. I began collecting them after a carabiner which I’d removed from a belay “opened” at 920 daN (a metric unit equivalent to circa 1 kg). The carabiners were tested at the Italian Mountaineering Club Gear and Techniques laboratory.

Logic and common sense tell us that the most important piece of gear on a single pitch sport climb should also be the strongest. But evidence seems to indicate the opposite; or rather, the most important safety point, such as the carabiner used at belay stations, is by far the worst carabiners o

f all. For example, I’ve found crabs which could only be sold in Europe if they had been marked “not for climbing” READ MORE